Railway-rail guard and gage.



G. KOMAREK & G. R. SGHLEIER.

- RAILWAY RAIL GUARD AND GAGE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2, 1912.

1,058,762. PatentedApr.15 ,1913.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GUSTAV KOMAREK AND GEORGE R. SCHLEIER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSQURI.

RAILWAY-RAIL GUARD AND GAGE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 2, 191.2.

Patented Apr. 15, 1913. Serial No. 712,897.

way rails in cross section, and also showing our improved rail gage andguard applied to said rails. Fig. 2 is a plan view of our improved railgage and guard, and showing a portion of a rail in position at one endof said combined gage and guard. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one endof the gage bar forming a part of our invention. Fig. 4 is across-sectional view taken ELPPI'OXI- mately on the line 47-4: of Fig.2.

Our invention relates to new and useful improvements in railway trackconstruction, and more particularly to a age and guard member adapted tobe uti ized between the railway track rails.

The principal object of our invention is to provide simple, inexpensivemeans, which, when applied to the rails, will accurately gage the same,and which means forms an effective tie or guard between the rails toprevent the same from spreading.

A further object of our invention is to construct a combined gage andguard which can be readily applied to track rails already in positionupon and fixed to the ties, thus obviating the necessity of looseningthe rails for the purpose of applying the gage and guard devices.

A further object of our invention is to construct a combined gage andguard which is composed of a minimum number of parts, and which can bereadily combined with and connected to railway rails, and further toprovide simple means forlocking the gage member to the rail-engagingmembers, and which locking means, when placed in position, isinstrumental in drawing the track rails into proper positions againstthe gage bar.

With the above objects in view our invention consists in certain novelfeatures of construction and arrangement of parts hereinaftermo-re fullydescribed and claimed. I Referring by numerals to the accompanylngdrawings, 5 designates the gage member which is preferably made of acommercially rolled bar of steel or wrought iron and rectangular incross section, although it is obvious that bars of other cross-sectionalarea can be used. Formed on one of the side faces of this bar and atpoints adjacent to its ends are lugs 6 which are made by bendingportions of said bar outwardly'by means of a suitable tool, and theinner faces of these lugs form shoulders 7 adapted to be engaged by thekeys that are utilized for uniting the gage bar and the rail-engagingmembers.-

Formed in the ends of the gage bar 5 are horizontally disposed notches 8adapted to the inner flanges of the track rails are engaged in saidnotches, said rails are properly gaged or spaced apart; thus, by the useof our improved gage bar, it is possible to lay a railway track withoutthe use of the ordinary measuring devices and gage bars.

The rail-engaging members utilized in connection with our improved gagebar, and which perform the function of guards to prevent the rails fromspreading, are preferably cast in steel or malleable iron, and eachguard member comprises a base plate 9 provided on its outer end with ahook 10 that engages over the outer base flange of the track rail.

Formed integral with one end of each plate 9 and on one side thereof isa vertically disposed web or wall 11% and formed integral with the upperportion of this web or wall and extending horizontally therefrom overthe end portion of the base plate 9 is a plate 12. The space between theend portion of the base plate 9 and the plate 12 is of suflicient widthto accommodate the end portion of the gage bar 5, and formed through theplate 12 and end portion of the plate 9 are alined apertures 13 that areadapted to receive a split key 14. This key is preferably made of a flatmetal plate bent double with one of the legs longer than the other inorder that it may be bent upwardly against the underside of the baseplate, thereby locking the parts in their assembled slightly,

positions. The openings 13 are made of sufficient length to permit theguard members to move lengthwise with respect to the gage bar when thekeys are driven through said openings and engage against the shoulder 7on the lugs 6 of said gage bar, such action drawing the hooks 10 intoclose engagement with the outer base flanges of the rails, and in turndrawing the inner base flanges of said rails firmly into the" notches inthe ends of the gage bar.

The tops of the plates 9 are cut away as designated by 9*, inside thehooks 10, and thus the base flanges of the rails are directly engaged byonly the hook portions 10 on the outer ends of the guard castings, whicharrangement permits the guard castings to automatically seat themselvesupon the base flanges, regardless of any slight defects or roughness onthe surfaces of said guard castings. This arrangement also permits thenotched end of the gage bar to automatically adjust itself against theinner base flange of the rail without restraint from any part of theguard casting.

The outer ends of the gage bars fit snugly between the plates 9 and 12,and when the keys are driven through the apertures 13 and bear againstthe shoulders 7 on the rear sides of the lugs 6 the base castings aredrawn inwardly toward the gage bar, thereby engaging the outer baseflanges of the rails and forcing the inner base flanges into the notches8.

As hereinbefore stated, the gage bar with its notched ends is made toproper length, and when the inner base flanges of the rails are properlyseated in the notches 8, said rails will be properly spaced apart, andby means of the guard castings said rails will be locked in their properpositions.

By our improved construction any ordinary discrepancy or roughness ofthe castings forming the guard plates will not change the proper gage ofthe rails, for when the parts are properly assembled, the keys bearingupon the shoulders on the lugs 6 draw thei -guard castings inwardly,thereby drawing the rails to proper gage. When the parts are assembledthe gage bar 5 is positioned between the rails with its notched endsengaging the inner base flanges 01": said rails, after which the hookson the outer ends of the guard castings are engaged on the outer baseflanges of the rails, and said guard castings are now moved lengthwiseof the rails until the ends of the gage bar are positioned between theplates 9 and 12. The keys 1 L are now driven in the place after whichthe long end of said key is bent upward, thereby locking the variousparts in their adjusted and assembled positions.

A combined railway rail gage and guard of our improved construction iscomparatively simple, comprises a minimum number of parts, firmly tiesthe track rails to each other and prevents their spreading and providessimple means whereby said track rails are readily gaged or spaced apart.

It will be readily understood that minor changes in the size, form andconstruction of the various parts of our improved device can be made andsubstituted for those herein shown and described without departing fromthe spirit of our invention, the scope of which is set forth in theappended claims.

We claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a gage bar provided in its endswith notches adapted to engage the inner base flanges of a pair of railsand which gage bar is provided adjacent to its ends with shoulders,guard members adapted to engage the base portions of the rails and theend portions of said gage bar, and wedges adapted to be inserted throughopenings in the guard members and bear against the shoulders on the gagebar for locking said guard members to the gage bar and to the rails.

2. In a device of the class described, a gage bar provided withvertically disposed shoulders and with horizontally disposed notchesadapted to engage the inner base flanges of a pair of railway trackrails, guard members adapted to engage the base flanges of the rails andthe end portions of the gage bar, and wedges adapted to pass throughopenings in the guard members and engage the shoulders on the gage barto cause the guard members to exert pressure on the rails and move thesame into position against the ends of the gage bar.

3. The combination with a gage bar provided in its ends with notchesadapted to receive the inner base flanges of a pair of railway trackrails, which gage bar is provided with shoulders near said notches, ofplates applied to the ends of said gage bar, parts of which platesembrace the ends of said gage bar, hooks on said plates adapted toengage the outer base flanges of the rails, and wedge keys adapted topass through the plates and engage against the shoulders on the gage barfor locking the bar and plates to each other and to the rails.

4. The combination with a gage bar provided in its ends with notchesadapted to receive the inner base flanges of a pair of railway trackrails and provided with shoulders adjacent to said notches, of guardmembers each provided with a pair of plates adapted to engage the guardrail, hooks on said guard members adapted to engage the outer baseflanges of the track rails, and wedge keys adapted to pass throughopenings formed in the plates of the guard members for locking the guardmembers to the gage bar and to the track rails.

5. In a device of the class described, a railway track rail gage barprovided in its ends with horizontally disposed seats adapted to receivethe inner base flanges of a pair of track rails, vertically disposed{shoulders on said gage bar adjacent to said seats, means detachablyapplied to the end of the gage bar for engaging the outer base flangesof the track rails, and means adapted to engage the shoulders on thegage 'bar for locking the rail-engaging means to. the rails and drawingthe inner flanges thereof into the seats in said gage bar.

6. The combination with a railwaytrack rail gage bar having notches in'its ends adapted to receive the inner base flanges of track rails,rail-engaging members mounted for sliding movement of the end portionsof the gage bar, and wedge keys adapted to engage parts of therail-engaging means and the gage bar for moving the rail-engaging meansupon the gage bar to clam the base portions of the track rails and 100the railen aging means to the gage bar.

n testimony whereof we hereunto afiix our signatures in the resence oftwo witnesses, this 15th day of July, 1912.

GUSTAV KOMAREK. GEORGE R. SCHLEIER. Witnesses:

M. P. SMITH, M. A. HANDEL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for live cents each, by addreslingthe Commissioner of Pat-nil.

v Washington, D. 0."

